Fine Gael / Labour government’s commitment to more cuts will worsen jobs situation
Today’s unemployment statistics from the CSO demonstrate yet again that the reward for austerity policies is higher joblessness. Behind this latest rise in the figures signing on is the more significant hike in those characterised as long term unemployed which has increased to over 40% of claimants compared to 31% this time last year.
If one then factors in the emigration figures you can see we have a growing social disaster on our hands. What will be the response of this government? Yet more cuts and impositions on working people and the unemployed!
Even if exports continue to rise and some foreign direct investment miraculously arrives it will not be adequate to offset the destruction that has taken place since the crisis began. This is more so the case if the the government keeps killing demand in the economy and diverting revenues to the bondholders and ECB.
It was Einstein who defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results each time. This approach sums up the government perfectly. The situation demands an active movement of opposition to austerity by ordinary people in the autumn and radical alternative for job creation based on emergency public works and an expansion of state enterprise and credit for small and medium enterprises.
The Socialist Party and United Left Alliance will play a leading role in both helping organise campaigns of resistance on the various attack in store for us from the government as well as putting forward the socialist alternative to end the crisis.
